


A Brief History Of Our Love

by Mishiees



Category: Hannibal (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Cannibalism, Canon-Typical Violence, Dark Will Graham, Developing Relationship, First Meetings, Hannibal Lecter is the Chesapeake Ripper, M/M, Murder Husbands, Not Beta Read, One Shot, Possessive Hannibal Lecter, Sassy Will Graham, Secret Relationship, Smitten Hannibal Lecter, Will Graham Knows
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-28
Updated: 2020-11-30
Packaged: 2021-03-09 18:07:03
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,866
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27760477
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mishiees/pseuds/Mishiees
Summary: What if they had met years ago? Long before Will had begun his career at the bureau. Before the tea cup had been chipped.A surgeon visiting New Orleans’s on a medical conference takes an interest in the peculiar and cunning fisherman he’d found sitting on the docks, and the rest, as they say, is history.- I basically wanted to write chapter three, but added way to much context and wrote a whole AU meet -
Relationships: Will Graham & Hannibal Lecter, Will Graham/Hannibal Lecter
Comments: 51
Kudos: 510





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> (づ￣ ³￣)づ Bon appétit

Their pairing was inevitable. From the moment they met, born of a mutual understanding of the darker reaches of their minds Hannibal and Will had been besotted. Well, Hannibal had been smitten and Will had been his usual sarcastic self. 

They met years ago, before Will had begun his career at the Bureau. A surgeon visiting New Orleans’s on a medical conference had taken an interest in the peculiar fisherman he’d found sitting on the docks, ignoring the people that passed. 

Rather rudely ignoring Hannibal when the doctor had greeted the younger man, while on the prowl for some fresh meat. Hannibal had found that rather than his usual disguised the discourteous so often conjured in him he was intrigued by the younger man. This only grew all the more consuming when Will had stood up, given him the once over and announced he should get back to work, there was a monster in town. 

Of course, for his own safety, he began keeping a close eye on the actives of the beat cop. A gamble when he should have simply killed the other. Despite being suspicion of Hannibal, Will didn’t seem inclined to do anything with the information. It almost looked as if it was an inconvenience to the man that a serial killer had taken up watching him from the shadows. 

If you asked Hannibal why Will had not made every effort to take away his freedom you would receive a long and poetic answer about love at first sight, soulmates and how he had captured Will’s interest as much as Will had seized his own. Of course, if you asked Will the same question you’d get an eye roll and a muttered response about too much paperwork for not enough proof. 

For Hannibal being ignored and not marvelled at was a dent to his ego he just couldn’t stand for and on his fourth visit to the city, and fifth accidental run in with Will Graham, he vowed to change that. 

Will would be his. 

Will was just annoyed an arrogant doctor was stalking him, and had ‘accidentally’ spilled his coffee so he could offer to buy Will a new one and strike up a conversation.

Hannibal was less than subtle when it came to his intentions. 

As evidenced by the fact, shortly after sitting through coffee, sharing many comfortable silences and abrasive answers from Will, it ended with the curly haired man shouting “If you want to psychoanalyst me, you best become a psychiatrist, because I’m not letting you in my head.” Before storming off. 

Shortly after that interaction abruptly ended Will started receiving flowers. 

To his home. 

To his work. 

It was quite the gossip of the precinct and becoming increasingly harder to ignore. 

Chocolates. Homemade dinners on his doorstep, where he couldn’t quite work out the meat. Coffee to his desk. Letters. Ever. Single. Day. It was as if Hannibal had a thought he needed to share his musing with Will, despite the lack of response. Tickets to the opera. Some rather impressive sketches of Will. A new suit, for the opera. Some rather suggestive sketches. Which then resulted in the suit being burned alongside the letters and drawings of himself. 

An apology basket with a leash and collar, sent to his work, which was about to ensure the next time Will saw Hannibal the doctor received a broken nose, but upon walking in his home there was a dog. 

Will kept the dog. 

And after several months and the relentless pursuit Will reluctantly agreed to a date. With a few conditions. 1. Will got to choose where they want. 2. If Hannibal brought any food it had to be fish. 3. Hannibal had to pick him up from work, so even the FBI could work out who the killer was, if he ended up on display. 

Their first date was on a secluded beach, under the stars, with the waves lapping at the sore, a pleasant vegetarian picnic, interesting conversation and Winston happily curled next to them on the blanket that was placed on the sand. 

It ended with some of the best sex of Will’s life. 

They had a second date.   
And another. 

Every day they would talk on the telephone, and at least once a month Hannibal would travel to spend the weekend in New Orleans. 

They seamlessly and irreplaceably became part of one and others lives. 

Will even took time off work to visit Hannibal in Baltimore, at his ridiculously expensive and, as Will announced when he first walked through the door, “pretentious” home. The pair enjoyed a week living in perfect harmony, and it just felt right.

Will did eat the meat. 

It was at the end of that week Hannibal decided to take Will to a property he was thinking of purchasing. “I am planning for it to become my office.” 

A bemused Will had blinked at him, before falling into the trap and asking “For?” 

“Psychiatry.” 

They had some rather active sex on the floor of the empty room that would soon become Dr. Hannibal Lecter, esteemed psychiatrists office. 

The change in profession afforded the not so good doctor more time to be in charge of his schedule and therefore spend more time with Will and his steadily growing army of dogs. 

Hannibal kept upsetting the other, and it seemed the only way to tempt Will into talking to him again, despite how manipulative Hannibal liked to believe himself to be, was a new addition to the family. It would appear if the tea cup is not already cracked, it is exceptionally hard to break. Or perhaps it was just that Hannibal wasn’t the only one playing a game to get what he wanted. 

Hannibal Lecter and Will Graham had found their equal. 

It was one and a half years after their first date when the Chesapeake Ripper began a killing spree in the New Orleans area. The one officer able to connect these murders back to the MO of the killer was Will. The ease in which the man was able to empathise with the killer and see things in the scene that no-one else could, caught the attention of Jack Crawford, Agent-in-Charge of the Behavioural Science Unit.

Jack offered him a job training at Quantico with the potential to do some special agent work on some of the more prolific cases the Bureau investigated. 

Will enjoyed the celebratory feast Hannibal had prepared for him, at the offer of the position. 

Despite his best effort in ensuring he would get exactly what he wanted, Will Graham stubbornly refused to move in with Hannibal. Not taking the news well resulted in Hannibal attempting to use various sedatives to mold Will into someone far more amenable and compliant to his suggestions. 

At the time Will had worried he was losing his mind. Being in his own skin has just felt wrong, there was a dark fog seeping into his every thought, clouding his judgment and an overwhelming sense of something sinister he just couldn’t shake. On the evening he had moved the last box of his stuff into the others house and the elder man had announced “I’ve had one of the guest rooms redecorated to suit your tastes, I felt you may wish somewhere to pursue your hobbies.” that fog cleared and revealed the unwelcome truth. 

Will had taken the opportunity to climb into Hannibal’s lap, at the dining table, the pair having just finished a dessert. Firm hands help his hips to support both their weights in the chair. The arousal in the doctor’s eyes soon turned into shock and admiration, as Will pressed a scalpel to his neck and made it very clear “I am not your toy, Hannibal.” 

They agreed to respecting each others choices and to keep work and pleasure separate. 

Will got a seventh dog and moved to Wolf Trap, Virginia and began working as Special Agent Graham. 

This pleasant and secret harmony continued for about another year. 

This was until a serial killer, nowhere near as impressive as the Ripper(Will said this far to his colleagues far too often that people had start to think he was the slightest bit unstable), had taken a keen interest in Will and decided to woo the man. 

At first it had been amusing to watch the possessive side of Hannibal come out, and Will had knowingly encouraged it. Sending letters to the other serial killer, under the guise of helping catch the other. Will would revel at the fury burning away in his lovers eyes each time he would read an article where Will had placed a secret message to his admirer. 

The saying goes, if you play with fire you are going to get burned. 

The first time Hannibal said that he loved Will, was the same evening that he had kidnapped, bound Will in place before plunging a knife into Will’s shoulder, ripping apart the flesh, and using the blood carefully curated a copycat scene around him, while berating the other for igniting his wrath. 

“I love you.” Were the words that left Hannibal’s mouth, but the threat was about betrayal. There was only so far the Ripper would allow himself to be pushed, and Will had gone skipping over the line long ago. Will understood this punishment was so he could be forgiven. He'd broken their trust and respect in the pursuit of a game. 

The scar that would form on his shoulder was a promise. 

Once the masterpiece was almost painted Hannibal had turned back to Will, who's eyes had witnessed the way the Chesapeake Ripper had worked, and slowly crossed the room. Careful hands stroked stay curls from the man's face, then the pad of his thumb soothed the brows furrowing. 

Will still couldn't see what Hannibal was trying to show him... But the scene wasn't yet done. 

The same knife then plunged into his abdomen, pulling upwards, in an excruciating and intimate moment, where his eyes never left Hannibal's but the blade ripped apart his insides. He was glad for the binds keeping him in place and steady hand that wiped a singular tear away from his cheek. Strung up against the wall, with blood still seeping down from the wounds, sweat beading on his forehead and pain racing though his body, Will took a moment took look at the design he was a piece of before soft lips pressed to his own and Hannibal mercifully drugged the detective.

Hannibal had held Will in his arms as he had drifted off into the blissful silence of sleep. 

Having been phoned by the Ripper the FBI arrived to the scene promptly. On their arrival the team found photographs, so that any concerns of disturbing it to save Will Graham wouldn't cross their mind, as well as all the medical supplies they would need to ensure Will would survive. Even down to his blood type.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (づ￣ ³￣)づ Buon Appetito

The steady sound of beeping made his rouse drowsy from his sleep, blinking at the bright hospital lights and running a tongue over his dry lips. He was expecting to find Hannibal sat at his side, but he only found Jack staring expectedly at him and Alana Bloom looking worried at the foot of the bed. 

“Will, what happened?” The question was in relation to far more than how Will came to find himself in this hospital bed, but he chose to ignore the words behind his friends eyes and instead accept the gift he had been apart of. 

What had happened? 

They caught the killer. The scene Hannibal had created just for him was the final piece of the puzzle that showed the others true identity. 

After the media storm, a rather unpleasant article from one Freddie Lounds about the medical assistance the killer has offered Will and that that meant, a lot of therapy and the promise he would take time to recover, Will was released from hospital. 

He was shocked to find no new pet on his doorstep. 

A month went past with no contact from Hannibal, although Will did frequently received care packages. 

After so long of being in a relationship neither of the men felt complete without the other, but both far too stubborn to act. 

That summer was one of the worst, as the Chesapeake Ripper plagued the area of Maryland, scene after scene, piece after piece, of macabre beauty. Although still in recovery and not able to see scenes in person Jack would still demand he look over the cases. 

Will remarked that it looked like the Ripper’s heart was broken…

The FBI did not agree that was possible, and Dr. Bloom stepped in to ensure Jack stopped hassling Will while he was in need of time to recuperate physically and mentally from the ordeal he had been though. Clearly the encounter had done something to him, to be able to believe the Chesapeake Ripper capable of affection. 

Alana and Will became almost friends, though their relationship was strained when it came to the budding relationship she seemed to be striking with Hannibal Lecter. In the back of his mind Will knew that the other man was only using her for information on Will, but the jealous, rejected and pained side of him was less than pleased to hear of the two sharing meals and pleasant conversation. 

The Wrath of the Ripper came to an end when Will Graham got close to catching the man behind the crimes.

On early return to work, Will had single handily lead the entire team closer to revealing the Ripper’s true identity than they had ever got before. He was ruthless, unstoppable and hungry for it. 

The pinnacle of this manhunt ended as it had begun, in the dark. 

When Jack and Will has gone a separate way from the rest of the team, the pair of them had ended trapped in a room together. Or, Will has placed them in a room together, in the hopes of meeting his own agenda. 

The power had gone out, and the pair plunged into darkness. 

In the still of the room, one of the only sounds that could be heard was Jack’s body hitting the floor, before Will was pulled into a painful embrace. 

One hand slid into his curls, yanking his hair back and exposing his neck, while the other looped around his waist, pulling him in close. Hannibal's breath tickled his neck as the other took a deep breath in, sucking in the scent of his beloved like a man who had gone without oxygen. 

The pair looked like they were staged ready to start a waltz. 

“William.” Came the familiar voice in the darkness. “You must know I cannot allow you to continue. Anything you wish to say?”

“I love you too.” 

A moment of silence, and a soft chuckle, Will was released from the violent hold, and instead the pair stood in an embrace. "Cunning, boy." Hannibal praised, pressing a soft kiss to the corner of Will mouth. 

Just like that they were back at their mutual understanding.

A needle pressed into Will's neck, rendering him in the same state of unconsciousness as Jack. Hannibal gently lowering the other man to his knees, and then laying him upon the floor before disappearing into the darkness. 

That evening, when Jack was safely in the hospital recovering from knock on the head he had received when falling to the floor, and Will had given as much detail as possible on what happened, he had made his way home, to find a concerned Hannibal Lecter on his doorstep. 

That night was the best sex he had ever had.

It was bruising fingers, teeth and missing months of passion and want. They both saw each other for who they were, and nothing separated them anymore. 

After time apart and every surface in each of their respective houses being used to their full potential Hannibal took Will on holiday. It was easy enough for them both to get time off work, much needed after the traumatic experience. 

Of course Hannibal already owned a place in Italy. 

The month spent together in the sun was perfect. 

Upon their return they both had tasteful but expensive golden bands around their left ring fingers. 

After several more months of time away from work, Will finally felt it was time to return. Numerous trips with Hannibal to the Opera had him starting to feel like arm candy. His husband did very little to dissuade the Baltimore socialites of this opinion. In all honesty he enjoyed how petulant it made Will, as the other would throw himself into the Bentley and proceed to spend the entire journey home complaining about the experience and patrons.

Hannibal also found himself enjoying the shared hobby the had adopted which lent itself seamlessly to Will expressing those frustrations. 

The extended time in each other’s company had changed Will, enough for people to become worried about him. 

Though Hannibal would tell you he had seen nothing more beautiful than the transformation he was fortunate enough to witness. 

When Will returned to work people were overly concerned about his stability. Jack, from the point of not being able to have his bloodhound on scenes and Alana from a sympathetic and more compassionate place. Though Will suspected she may just be more involved in his life, since Hannibal was certainly spending less time trying to gather information from the woman. 

In a late night phone call, after Will had spent the afternoon at a scene, saying how boring and unimaginative the killer was, Alana recommended to Jack an old friend of hers, in the hopes that Dr. Lecter would know how to manage the monsters that lurked in Will’s better than anyone at Quantico could. 

Not one to refuses a request from help from a friend, Hannibal decided to play along with the cryptic messaging Alana was giving him about a colleague in need of some support and soon found himself in Jack Crawford’s office, engaging in perfectly pleasant conversation about the man’s wife, while Alana tracked down this ‘mystery’ man.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (づ￣ ³￣)づ Guten Appetit

Scuffing his shoes along the carpet, like a petulant teenager being dragged to the head teachers office, Will kept his eyes downcast and Alan tried desperately to create the atmosphere of nothing being wrong to an unwilling audience. 

Will knew a trap when he saw one. 

“Let’s just get this over with.” He all but growled out when the pair came to a stop outside of Jack’s office door. 

A soft sigh escaped her lips, as a hand came up to delicately rest on Will’s shoulder. “We care about you, Will, and we’re worried about you. I want you to meet a friend of mine.” 

Assigning himself to immediately dislike whatever aging and dull colleague Alana had decided to inflict upon him, they both listened to the low voice making Jack laugh, before knuckles rasped on the door to alert the occupants of their arrival.

Will was stunned and unable to process who he was seeing for a moment, as the wooden door swung open and revealed his boss and husband sat making pleasant conversation at the desk. 

Mouth slightly agape he shuffled into the room, alongside Alana, before snapping his jaw closed sparing a quick glare at Hannibal, before moodily crossing his arms over his middle. ‘Great, they called my husband on me, just wonderful.’ 

“Hello Hannibal. Jack.” Alana greeted both the men with a nod of the head before looking over Will and seeing the defensive body language she took as anxieties and a defence mechanism rather than the strop. 

“Will,” Jack greeted, raising from behind his desk, with a smile on his face. “Allow me to introduce you to Dr. Lecter.” 

Wait. What. Will rapidly blinked trying to piece this together. 

“Hannibal is an old friend of mine, and I thought you two might get along.”

Resisting the urge to bite that they couldn’t have been that good of friends, if she was unaware of Will, the man decided instead to push his glasses up his nose and look at Hannibal, who had a shit eating grin plastered on his face. 

“That’s a disgusting tie.” Will eventually settled on, addressing Hannibal. 

“Will!” Jack berated immediately at the agents appalling lack of manners.

“It’s quite alright, Jack. This is actually a beloved gift from my husband.” The doctor returned diplomatically.

Bristling, Alana started her enquiry of “I…I, Uh, I had no idea you were married, Hannibal. That’s lovely news. Congratulations.” Everyone in the room was able to pick up on the slightly bitter and disappointed tone that seeped into her words.

“It’s a fairly recent development, though my heart has been theirs for many years now.” 

It was becoming increasingly hard not to burst out laughing. “He can’t be my therapist.” Will said blankly. “Can I go back to work?” 

“Will, it isn’t that we think you need a therapist. Perhaps just someone to talk to.” Alana tried to soothe over the rising tension and recover from her fumble with a strictly professional tone. 

“It’s not optional.” Jack added. 

Clearly Hannibal was enjoying this squabble far too much to step in and announce that they were married in this moment so Will decided to act instead. “A tie like that, your husband must hate you.” 

“I believe it is quite the opposite.” 

“Will, what had gotten into? Hannibal has agreed to work with you.” Jack said despairingly, watching the interaction between the two. 

“Did he agree to work with me?” Will snapped, turning his attention to Jack, over the past few months he's been a lot more standoffish with the head of the BSU, rather than smiling at Hannibal. “Or did he agree to help out with whatever sob story you span? Because I know you didn’t mention my name.”

“Of course we did, Will. We’ve not been talking about you behind your back, we’re all friends here.” Alana said once more.

“I am afraid I have to agree with William, you did make no reference to his name when you called me Alana. Had I known I would have respectfully declined rather than have wasted any of your time.” 

“Dr. Lecter, it’s not…” 

Jack began only to be interrupted by Will who marched forward, closing the space between himself and Hannibal and asking. “Did you bring me lunch?” 

“Of course.” Came the response. As the two other people in the office watched the display, confused. “I was hoping to surprise you after my meeting.” 

A quick press of the lips to Hannibal’s and Will pulled back triumphantly. “Thanks.” 

Humming, Hannibal casually looped one arm around Will’s hip as the special agent moved to rest against his side. “It would appear there has been some slight miscommunication. Will happens to be my husband so it would be unethical for me to act as his psychiatrist.” 

“It really is an ugly tie.” 

“I recall that being the point when you gifted it to me, mielasis.” Hannibal said fondly. “I think it would be best if we allowed Dr. Bloom and Jack some time to gather their thoughts. Shall we?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finished ~(˘▾˘~) 
> 
> Yes, chapter three really was my plot bunny and the other two chapters just happened. Hope it was okay!


End file.
